funeral
by amiyaaa
Summary: or, marlene mckinnon is dead and nothing will ever be the same. [oneshot, emmeline centric]


Emmeline can't believe it. No, she _won't_ believe it. But Dumbledore had delivered the news himself and since when did Dumbledore lie? Okay, yes, she'll admit, the headmaster was a master of lies but he would never lie about something like this. The thought doesn't help sooth her nerves as she makes her way up the uneven road that she knew better than her own. As she walks, she looks at every single place, from the ice cream shop to the laundromat with sadness, recalling every memory she had of the small town.

When she reaches the house, she almost turns away. She can't go in there, it'll be too much for her. But then she sees Lily.

Her old friend is by the window, gazing out at Emmeline, with one hand gripping a photograph and the other holding Harry in place. Emm's heart breaks and then she makes her decision. No matter how hard it will be, she has to go in. She has to be there, for Lily and Alice and Dorcas and Sirius and Remus and hell she can barely think now. But most of all, she has to be there for Marlene.

As she walks up the stairs leading to the front door, she's met with a painful memory.

" _Come_ on _, Emmy, my parents will love you I don't see why you're so scared!" Marlene had exclaimed as she pulled a fourteen year old Emm up the same stone stairs. Her blonde hair was streaked with blue and it was landing in her chocolate ice cream as she tugged her unwilling friend._

" _I'm not scared Marls, for heaven's sake I'm a_ Gryfinndor _!" Emm had defended herself. Marlene had just laughed at her and pulled the girl by her brown ponytail into the house._

Emmeline turns around, half expecting to see Marlene right behind her, tripping over the old flower pot that hid the secret key. But the blonde girl was already in the house and this time she wouldn't be running to greet Emm.

She hesitates as her fingers close around the silver doorknob. But Mary is in there and her mascara is running and her hair's a mess. Dorcas is next to her, screaming soundlessly into Peter's shirt. She needs to be there for them.

When she enters the house, she nearly runs back out. Marlene is there but at the same time she's not. She's on the ground, her blonde hair fanned out around her like a halo and her seaglass eyes forever shut. Emmeline takes her eyes off of her best friend and catches sight of Sirius. He's lying on the floor, staring aimlessly at the ceiling and she's reminded of an old memory.

 _The three of them, Emm, Sirius, and Marlene, are sitting on Emm's roof, eating crisps and soaking up the sunshine of the July night. Term had just ended and the teenagers were now adults, on their own in the middle of the war. It's Sirius who speaks first._

" _I don't want to die," he says and it's at that moment that Emm remembers that they're seventeen, they aren't ready for this. Sirius sounds scared and it's enough to shock her into silence. So Marlene talks next._

" _I don't think any of us do, but I'm prepared. If I die, it's not going to be a Death Eater who takes me down. It'll be You-Know-Who himself and I'll go into my grave kicking and screaming." Emm is shocked at first, to hear Marls saying that. But she knows her best friend well enough and nothing is closer to the truth. So finally, she speaks._

" _I want my funeral to be like my sweet sixteen." And none of them are quite sure why, maybe it's the absolute absurdity of the statement, maybe they're going insane, but the trio just starts laughing hysterically. Marls nearly tumbles off the roof and Sirius isn't far behind. Finally, they compose themselves and Emm talks again._

' _There was cake and we were drinking and James went skinny dipping in the lake and Peter and Mary got the house elves to sing me Happy Birthday." she recalls. "I want my funeral to be just like that."_

 _Marlene grins before saying, "I want my funeral to be like your aunt Flora's wedding." Emm grins as she thinks about that day. All of her friends had been invited and it was a huge affair. Especially when Sirius was caught making out with the drunken groom. Emm hadn't stopped laughing until the next day. Sirius chuckles as well before saying, "Well this time, I won't be making out with the star of the show. I'm sorry, Marls, but kissing your dead body doesn't appeal to me the way the live one does. Marlene nearly pushes him off the roof and they laugh for a bit until the conversation dies down again._

" _Promise me." Marlene says. "Promise me that if I die before either of you, my funeral won't be dreary. Put the 'fun' in my funeral, please." Emm nods and together they somehow manage to triple pinky swear it._

Emmeline is jerked out of her memory by Lily, who rests a warm hand on her back. She didn't realize, but while she was thinking, she'd suck down on her knees, her hands tangling through Marlene's hair. She turns to Sirius and speaks for the first time since she arrived.

"Remember our promise."

* * *

Death Eaters surround Emmeline as she attempts to shield herself. But she is not twenty anymore and her old friends can't help her any longer. She realizes, with a start, that she is completely alone. The news of Sirius' death had spread quickly which led to Remus' disappearance. Dorcas had died shortly before James and Lily, Alice and Frank were insane, Peter had betrayed them, and Mary had moved to the States back in '92. For the first time, Emmeline was really, truly alone. Her heart beats faster in her chest as she considers what she's about to do. But her heart overrules her head and she places her wand at the ground.

"Do your worst." she tells the bemused Death Eaters. And when her body hits the ground she thinks : _'Remus has to make sure my funeral is as fun as my sweet sixteen.'_

 _fin._


End file.
